Sterling Insurance Brokers

What Sterling Insurance Brokers does

Sterling Insurance Brokers Ltd. (operating as Sterling IBL) is a privately held, independent Canadian insurance brokerage founded in 2016 and headquartered in Oakville, Ontario. The firm serves small and medium-sized businesses and individual consumers across Ontario, brokering both commercial and personal lines through a network of more than 20 carrier partners including Intact, Aviva, Economical, Jevco, CHUBB, Travelers, RSA, and Gore Mutual. Its commercial book spans general liability, commercial auto and fleet, commercial property, professional liability, directors and officers liability, builder's risk, surety and bonds, and specialty coverages such as cyber, while its personal lines include home, auto, personal umbrella, high-net-worth, and recreational vehicles. The firm has steadily added vertical-specialty pages for niches such as long-haul trucking, construction, restaurants, landlords, gas stations, beauty spas, short-term rental hosts, e-commerce delivery, and health and fitness instructors.

The brokerage operates on a commission-based revenue model, earning 5%-20% of premium on policies placed with carrier partners, plus contingent commissions tied to portfolio growth, profitability, retention, and volume. Its technology stack is centered on a proprietary online quoting system capable of binding a policy in under three minutes, paired with the CSR24 customer portal for 24/7 policy access, certificate retrieval, and account management. Customers are acquired through a multi-channel mix: the sterlingibl.com website, direct phone sales (905-864-0057), email inquiries, organic social media on Twitter/Facebook/Instagram/LinkedIn, SEO-optimized industry landing pages, and customer referrals. Certification is absent from the data, and the firm is regulated under standard Canadian provincial insurance broker licensing. The legal entity is Sterling Insurance Brokers Ltd., with Asad Chaudhery serving as President.

The current operating model is that of a founder-led micro-brokerage, with 1-10 employees and no disclosed parent company, institutional investors, or funding rounds. The firm is privately held with no public ticker, no subsidiaries, and no M&A activity on record. Headcount has not been publicly disclosed beyond the 1-10 range, and revenue is not reported, making the firm's financial scale inferable only from commission-rate disclosures and the size of its carrier roster.

Name

Sterling Insurance Brokers

Legal name

Sterling Insurance Brokers Ltd.

Website

https://sterlingibl.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sterling Insurance Brokers Ltd. is a privately held, independent Ontario-based insurance brokerage brokering commercial and personal lines through 20+ carrier partners for SMBs and individual consumers, with a digital quoting platform and CSR24 customer portal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Insurance Brokerage

NAICS

Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (52421)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial Lines Insurance Brokerage (FSAEADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Retail (Personal Lines) Insurance Brokerage (FSAEADAA), Specialty Insurance Brokerage (Marine, Aviation, Cyber, Professional Lines) (FSAEADAJ)

Keywords

• Commercial insurance brokerage
• Personal insurance brokerage
• Commercial liability insurance
• Commercial auto insurance
• Home and auto insurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Milton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Insurance Brokerage Commissions: Sterling Insurance Brokers operates as an independent insurance broker, earning commission on insurance policies placed with their carrier partners. Commission rates vary by insurer, ranging from 5% to 20% of the premium. Some insurers also pay contingent commissions based on portfolio performance metrics including growth, profitability, volume, retention, and services provided.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Sterling Insurance Brokers is an independent insurance brokerage that places commercial and personal insurance policies with more than 20 carrier partners on behalf of clients across Ontario, Canada. The brokerage earns commissions on premiums (ranging from 5% to 20%) and offers both standard personal lines (home, auto) and specialized commercial lines (commercial general liability, commercial auto and fleet, professional liability, surety and bonds, cyber liability, and hard-to-place risks). Operations are supported by an advanced online quoting system capable of binding policies in under three minutes and a CSR24 24/7 customer portal.

Product overview

Sterling Insurance Brokers is an independent insurance brokerage offering a comprehensive portfolio of both business and personal insurance products. The business insurance portfolio includes commercial general liability, commercial auto & fleet, commercial property, professional liability, directors & officers liability, errors & omissions, builder's risk, legal expense, surety & bonds, and highway carrier bonds. Personal insurance offerings encompass home insurance, auto insurance, personal umbrella, high net worth, and recreational vehicles. The company also provides specialized cyber insurance liability coverage and serves diverse industries including long haul trucking, construction, retail, restaurants, and professional services. The company acts as an intermediary between clients and multiple insurance providers, leveraging relationships with insurers such as Intact, Aviva, Jevco, Economical, Travelers, RSA, Chubb, and others.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Commercial General Liability Insurance

Quantifiable outcome

• Policy binding in under 3 minutes through advanced digital quoting

Named customers4 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

24 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Intact InsurancecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary insurance carrier partner with commission range of 10%-20%. Also offers contingent commission based on portfolio performance. Intact is one of Canada's largest property and casualty insurers.
• AvivacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor insurance carrier with commission range of 12.5%-20%. Aviva is a leading global insurer with significant Canadian presence.
• Economical InsurancecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance carrier partner with commission range of 10%-20%.
• Jevco InsurancecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance carrier with commission range of 5%-12.5%. Specializes in hard-to-place and specialty risks.
• CHUBBcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGlobal insurance giant providing commercial and personal insurance products.
• Gore Mutual InsuranceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCanadian mutual insurance company with commission range of 12.5%-20%.
• Facility AssociationminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSpecialty insurer serving assigned risk markets with commission capped at $370.
• BeazleyminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLloyd's insurer providing specialty lines with 10% commission.
• Travelers CanadaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLeading North American insurer with Canadian operations.
• RSA Insurance Group CanadaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPart of RSA Group providing commercial and personal insurance.
• CanSURE UnderwritingminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorManaging General Agent (MGA) with 15% commission.
• Premier InsuranceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance carrier partner with 15% commission.
• Forward InsuranceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance partner operating in Canadian market.
• Lynx InsuranceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance carrier partner in the network.
• Special Risk Insurance Managers (SRIM)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorManaging General Agent for specialty and hard-to-place risks.
• Excess UnderwritingminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExcess and surplus lines underwriting facility.
• GMS (Government Medical Services)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance provider with commission arrangement.
• Ecclesiastical InsuranceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSpecialty insurer focused on faith-based and non-profit organizations with 10% commission.
• HSB CanadaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPart of Munich Re, providing specialty insurance including equipment breakdown.
• Brownstone Insurance ManagersminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMGA with commission range of 15%-17.5%.
• South Western GroupminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional insurance partner with 15% commission.
• TottenminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance carrier with 15% commission.
• The GuaranteeminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPart of Intact, specialty insurer.
• PAL CanadaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance partner in the network.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Hub International: Large North American insurance brokerage with significant Canadian operations across commercial and personal lines. Competes in the same brokerage distribution model but at enterprise scale with broader geographic and product reach.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (Canada): Global insurance brokerage and risk management firm with a Canadian platform serving commercial and specialty clients. Overlaps with Sterling on commercial and hard-to-place risks but operates at vastly larger scale with broader specialty capabilities.
• Co-operators: Canadian-owned multi-line insurance provider with direct brokerage distribution, offering commercial and personal lines nationally. Overlaps in personal and small commercial insurance distribution but is primarily a carrier with proprietary products.

Direct peers

• Acera Insurance: Canadian independent insurance brokerage formed through multiple acquisitions, serving commercial and personal lines. Comparable independent brokerage structure with multi-carrier access, though larger and more geographically diversified.
• Westland Insurance Group: Canadian independent brokerage serving personal and commercial clients across Western Canada with a multi-carrier model. Comparable in independent-broker positioning and commercial/personal product breadth, with greater geographic footprint.
• BrokerLink: One of Canada's largest independent insurance brokerages, offering commercial and personal lines across multiple provinces with multi-carrier access — a directly comparable independent brokerage model to Sterling, though at significantly larger scale.
• CapriCMW Insurance Services: Western Canada-based independent insurance brokerage serving commercial and personal clients with multi-carrier relationships. Comparable independent brokerage operating model with similar commercial/personal product mix.
• Excalibur Insurance Group: Canadian independent brokerage focused on commercial lines and specialty risks across multiple provinces. Directly comparable on independent brokerage model, multi-carrier access, and commercial/specialty risk emphasis.

Emerging players

• Surex Insurance: Canadian digital-first insurance brokerage providing online quoting across personal and small commercial lines. Comparable in technology-led approach and Ontario presence but focused more on personal lines volume versus Sterling's commercial specialty emphasis.

Regional players

• Summit Insurance Brokers (Ontario): Ontario-based independent commercial insurance brokerage specializing in commercial and specialty risks. Most directly comparable peer for Sterling's Ontario focus and commercial/specialty risk emphasis, with similar mid-market size.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sterlinginsures
• Facebookfacebook.com/SterlingInsuranceBrokers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sterlingibl
• Instagraminstagram.com/sterlingibl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sterling Insurance Brokers